Above Ground

Above Ground is Smith's debut novel about a Black family living in New Orleans during and after Hurricane Katrina. The story centers on Jonathan and Adeline, a couple with a young son, and tracks their experiences across multiple timelines. The narrative moves between past and present, showing both the immediate impact of the devastating 2005 storm and its long-lasting effects on the family fifteen years later. Through their story, the book examines how natural disasters can permanently reshape not just cities, but family bonds and individual identities. The novel explores themes of home, displacement, and the complicated ways trauma passes between generations. It considers what it means to rebuild - both physically and emotionally - and questions whether returning to a place can ever mean truly coming home.

Readers highlight Smith's poetic approach to exploring fatherhood, race, and parenthood through personal reflections and historical context. The collection resonates with parents who see their own experiences reflected in his observations about raising young children. Readers liked: - Raw honesty about parental fears and anxieties - Accessible writing style that blends poetry and prose - Balance of intimate family moments with broader social commentary Readers disliked: - Some essays feel less developed than others - A few poems come across as too abstract - Occasional repetition of themes Ratings: Goodreads: 4.34/5 (1,200+ ratings) Amazon: 4.7/5 (150+ ratings) From reviews: "His ability to weave between tender moments with his children and stark historical realities is masterful" - Goodreads reviewer "Sometimes the metaphors feel stretched too thin" - Amazon reviewer "The essays about his children hit home as a new parent" - Storygraph reviewer

Heavy by Kiese Laymon. A memoir exploring Black boyhood in the American South through the lens of family relationships, identity, and intergenerational trauma.

Memorial Drive by Natasha Trethewey. A poet laureate examines her mother's murder and her childhood in the segregated South through personal history and memory.

The Yellow House by Sarah M. Broom. A family chronicle set in New Orleans East traces generations of Black experience through the metaphor of a beloved family home.

Men We Reaped by Jesmyn Ward. A memoir connects the deaths of five young Black men in Mississippi to broader systemic inequalities and historical patterns.

The World According to Fannie Davis by Bridgett M. Davis. The story of a Black mother running numbers in Detroit illuminates family bonds and survival strategies in segregated America.

🌟 Author Clint Smith wrote this poetry collection while becoming a father himself, exploring the intersection of Black fatherhood and America's racial history 📚 The collection's title "Above Ground" references both hope and survival, drawing parallels between plants breaking through soil and the persistence of Black life in America 🎓 Smith, who holds a Ph.D. from Harvard University, is also known for his bestselling nonfiction work "How the Word Is Passed," which examines how different sites in America reckon with slavery 🌱 Many poems in the collection use botanical imagery and garden metaphors to explore themes of growth, inheritance, and generational change 🏆 Several poems from this collection were first published in prestigious literary journals including The New Yorker, The Atlantic, and Poetry Magazine before being collected in this volume